Besides hosting her eponymous MSNBC news show and teaching political science and running an institute at Wake Forest University, she is also on the front lines of an intersectional fight for racial justice and women’s rights.

This November, the Anna Julia Cooper Center, a research center directed by Dr. Harris-Perry, partnered with the White House Council on Women and Girls to co-host a major conference on expanding opportunities for women and girls of color. Her center is also part of new collaborative to advance equity for women and girls of color through research.

In this episode of Intersection, Jamil talks to his friend, mentor, and former boss about everything from the White House summit, to the complications of fighting to end sexual assault, to the gendered messages of “Hotline Bling.”